Landfill should shut down, not expand, Rutherford County leaders say

Rutherford County Commissioners Steve Pearcy and Will Jordan spoke against a proposed expansion of the private Middle Point Landfill through the possible sale of adjacent county landfill property.
Scott Broden/DNJ

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The private Middle Point Landfill is off East Jefferson Pike north of Murfreesboro.(Photo: Helen Comer/DNJ)Buy Photo

The private Middle Point Landfill should close when full rather than expand "the smell" onto adjacent public property, officials representing nearby constituents said Thursday.

"The people there refer to it as 'Mt. Trashmore,'" Steve Pearcy told fellow members of the Rutherford County Commission. "People are tired of the dirt on the streets or the trash in their yards. They are tired of the smell. I’m totally against any expansion of any landfill in my 2nd District. We can see what 30 years of trash has put in the Walter Hill community."

Mayor Ernest Burgess reminded Pearcy and others speaking out against a proposed expansion of Middle Point off East Jefferson Pike that the county spends about $500,000 per year maintaining the adjacent property. The public land contains a closed-and-unsealed public landfill that sometimes leaks leachate into the Stones River and a construction-and-demolition landfill.

"We have a liability," said Burgess, who has pursued solutions on what to do once Middle Point is full in an estimated eight to 12 years. "That’s a fact of life."

The 21-member commission decided in a 17-3 vote to defer a vote on allowing the owners of the 400-acre Middle Point to conduct tests on the 288-acre public land to determine if expansion is possible. The potential test is based on the recent recommendation of a consulting firm and the Rutherford County Solid Waste Advisory/Steering Council.

Landfill took over 'beautiful' farmland

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Jake Burkhalter, a Blackman resident and member with Statewide Organization for Community Empowerment (SOCM), talks about his opposition to the private Middle Point Landfill being able to expand onto an adjacent 288 acres owned by the Rutherford County government.
Scott Broden/DNJ

The council worked with with GBB Solid Waste Management Consultants in recommending the tests for a possible landfill expansion.

GBB President Harvey Gershman referred to his firm's recommended plan as Middle Point 2.0. The plan would add 15 years of service to a Middle Point owned by Republic Services, a publicly traded corporation in Phoenix.

Commissioner Will Jordan also spoke against a Middle Point expansion a short drive from the Leanna community he represents.

Jordan recalled how the former farmland looked like an idyllic Norman Rockwell painting before Middle Point came.

"It was beautiful," said Jordan, who grew up on a nearby dairy farm and has witnessed the stink being trucked into the community to dump at Middle Point. "What is the value of sacrificing the community?"

Haul trash outside Rutherford, commissioner says

The Walter Hill, Leanna and north Murfreesboro communities should not be for sale to expand the landfill, said Jordan, who'd rather see the trash hauled outside Rutherford just as other counties have decided to haul their trash here.

Pearcy said Middle Point expansion will make conditions worse.

"If you just want to throw away a community, that’s exactly what you need to do," said Pearcy, who resides in the Lascassas community a short drive from Middle Point Landfill. "It’s 2 miles from my house, and I can smell it at my house."

Pearcy suggested that the county allowing Republic Services to conduct testing on the adjacent property "is a step toward a mega landfill."

Any testing should be done by the county and independent of Republic Services, Pearcy said.

Commissioner opposes solid waste authority

In addition to the issue of tests to determine possible Middle Point expansion, the council urged local governments to explore the establishment of a solid waste authority that would oversee trash-and-recycling collection in the county and establish rates.

An authority could include three members representing the county, three from Murfreesboro, and one each from Smyrna, La Vergne and Eagleville, the consulting firm suggested.

Burgess said each elected government would decide whether to participate.

Commissioner Joe Gourley of Smyrna spoke against the establishment of an authority that would consist of appointed members instead of elected officials.

"If you take commissioners out of it, you have no link back to the electorate at all," Gourley said. "I think that’s a mistake."